34
SABBATH-SCHOOL LESSON QUARTERLY
to the northeast, and being constructed of the purest marble, is
said to have gleamed like a meteor to the gaze of the approaching
mariner. It was
-
built upon marshy ground, and the foundations
were laid at a vast expense. The first superstructure, or basement,
was ascended by a grand flight of fourteen steps, and upon this
platform was erected the temple, facing the east, 425 feet long, and
220 broad, and supported by columns of Parian marble, 60 feet
high, of which 36 were beautifully carved.
''The building was of the Ionic order. its porticoes con-
sisted each of 32 columns, eight abreast, and four deep, and
around the sides were two rows of columns. In the center of
the court or hall is the shrine, containing the image of the goddess.
We enter, and the roof, which is of cedar, is supported by a row,
on each side, of four columns of green jasper. In front of us is
the altar, rich with the carvings of Praxiteles, and beyond it
hangs from the ceiling the purple embroidered veil screening
the image that all the world worshipeth — a wooden image so
time-worn that whether the material be pine, or cedar, or ebony,
the nearest examination can not discover. Whence it came or
by whom it was shaped is a mystery, but the common belief is
that it fell from heaven."—
Abbreviated from "Life of St.
Paul," Lewiu, volume 1, pages 323-326.
3.
"The month of May was specially dedicated to the god-
dess of Ephesus, and was called from her the Artemisian. Dur-
ing the month was held the great fair — called Ephesia — which
attracted an immense concourse of people from all parts of
Asia, and was kept with all possible splendor and revelry. The
gods were personated by chosen representatives, who received
throughout the month a sort of mock adoration.
"The theater and stadium were densely crowded by festive
throngs to listen to the musical contest, to watch the horse-races
and the athletic exhibitions, or to look on with thrills of fieicer
emotion at the horrible combats of men and beasts. The vast
expense of these prolonged festivities and superb spectacles was
entirely borne by the ten Asiarchs. They were men of high dis-
tinction, chosen annually from the wealthiest citizens of the chief
cities of Asia, and it Was their duty to preside over the games
and to keep order in the theater. Their names were recorded on
coins and in public inscriptions, and the garlands and the purple
robes which distinguished them during the continuance of the
.feast were the external marks of the popular gratitude."—
Abbreviated from Farrar's "Life of St. Paul," pages 369, 370.
4.
''Paul informed the Corinthians of his trouble in Asia,
where, he says, 'We were pressed out of measure, above strength,
insomuch that we despaired even of life.' In his first epistle
he speaks of fighting with beasts at Ephesus. He thus refers